Syrian rebels claim successful attack on Hezbollah
Trucks headed from Damascus to Beirut blown up by landmines, opposition forces say
Aaron Kalman is a former writer and breaking news editor for the Times of Israel
Syrian rebels said they attacked and destroyed a convoy carrying Hezbollah operatives and officers of the regime’s army near the Lebanese border on Tuesday.
Trucks carrying the fighters, including a high-ranking Syrian officer, were blown up by landmines planted on the Beirut-Damascus highway after the rebels were informed of the convoy’s route, a statement by the Free Syrian Army said. According to the statement, all of the passengers were killed in the explosion.
The convoy was reportedly en route to Lebanon, where its members were slated to meet an unnamed security official.
Last week, Syrian rebels fought Hezbollah operatives, targeting the Shiite organization’s interests in Lebanon for the first time since the fighting broke out almost two years ago.
The Syrian rebel organization said in a statement on Thursday that FSA forces had launched two attacks against Hezbollah in northern Lebanon’s Hermel province.
“An FSA brigade launched two consecutive attacks at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, the first of which targeted a group of Hezbollah fighters in the western Qusayr district in Syria, killing or wounding all of its members,” the statement read. The attack was carried out with machine guns and antitank rockets against two four-wheel-drive vehicles used by Hezbollah.
In the second attack, several FSA brigades attacked with mortar shells a Hezbollah artillery position in the Hosh al-Sayyed Ali area inside Lebanon and “achieved direct hits,” according to the statement.
Ilan Ben Zion and Elhanan Miller contributed to this report.
